With the Dallas Cowboys’ 2008 season, which was presumably resurrected after knocking off a twin-pack of NFC West Twinkies at home in four days, now teetering on the edge of the abyss after blowing a ten-point lead with less than seven minutes to play at Pittsburgh on Sunday, owner Jerry Jones focused his most candid remarks on a guy who wasn’t even there to contribute to the debacle.

Jones has, in essence, declared to the world that he thinks Marion Barber, a bruising bull of a tailback, is a big sissy.

“He can play with that injured toe,” Jones said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. ”He can play with the soreness and a combination of those things. I see nothing that led us to believe he couldn’t.”

Meanwhile, Jones praised rookie running back Tashard Choice, who generated 166 total yards against the Steelers on Sunday.

“Tashard might have added a plus,” Jones said. “I don’t think we lost any slack there.”

As we point out in this week’s Ten-Pack for SportingNews.com (the column is not yet live, and the anticipation for it is now palpable . . . if Webster’s has an alternative definition for “palpable” that includes “non-existent”), the emergence of Choice and the presence of Barber and rookie first-rounder Felix Jones could give the team some trade bait in the offseason.

Indeed, Jones’ comments likely will prompt some teams to start calling in February about the availability of Barber.

The cap consequences of trading Barber, who signed a long-term deal earlier this year, aren’t presently known. Regardless of the timing of the trade, the entire cap charge would hit the books next season, since 2009 is the last capped year under the current CBA.

So if the acceleration is prohibitive, then it arguably wasn’t all that prudent for Jones to risk creating a problem with a player who could screw up team chemistry in the coming year even more than team chemistry already is screwed up right now.

Then again, given that Barber was drafted by Bill Parcells and that Felix Jones and Choice came after Parcells left town and then a year later raided the front office, our guess is that Jerry Jones would prefer to load the 2009 backfield with Felix Jones and Choice, since both players were added by the current regime.

The 48-year-old Dane, who scored 2,437 points during his 25-year career, played for the Atlanta Falcons the past two seasons but wasn't able to get a contract this year. Andersen said Monday he has given up his search and his NFL career.

Indeed, Jones’ comments likely will prompt some teams to start calling in February about the availability of Barber.

The cap consequences of trading Barber, who signed a long-term deal earlier this year, aren’t presently known. Regardless of the timing of the trade, the entire cap charge would hit the books next season, since 2009 is the last capped year under the current CBA.

Bowlen should at least call his buddy Jones up and inquire. next season obviously.

Indeed, Jones’ comments likely will prompt some teams to start calling in February about the availability of Barber.

The cap consequences of trading Barber, who signed a long-term deal earlier this year, aren’t presently known. Regardless of the timing of the trade, the entire cap charge would hit the books next season, since 2009 is the last capped year under the current CBA.

Bowlen should at least call his buddy Jones up and inquire. next season obviously.

Where's that smilie of the guy turned around pounding one out? That's me at the mere thought of such a signing.

ASHBURN, Va. -- Five-time Pro Bowl left tackle Chris Samuels is out for the season with a torn right triceps, the latest blow for a Washington Redskins team that has sunk to last place in the NFC East.

With the Dallas Cowboys’ 2008 season, which was presumably resurrected after knocking off a twin-pack of NFC West Twinkies at home in four days, now teetering on the edge of the abyss after blowing a ten-point lead with less than seven minutes to play at Pittsburgh on Sunday, owner Jerry Jones focused his most candid remarks on a guy who wasn’t even there to contribute to the debacle.

Jones has, in essence, declared to the world that he thinks Marion Barber, a bruising bull of a tailback, is a big sissy.

“He can play with that injured toe,” Jones said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. ”He can play with the soreness and a combination of those things. I see nothing that led us to believe he couldn’t.”

Meanwhile, Jones praised rookie running back Tashard Choice, who generated 166 total yards against the Steelers on Sunday.

“Tashard might have added a plus,” Jones said. “I don’t think we lost any slack there.”

As we point out in this week’s Ten-Pack for SportingNews.com (the column is not yet live, and the anticipation for it is now palpable . . . if Webster’s has an alternative definition for “palpable” that includes “non-existent”), the emergence of Choice and the presence of Barber and rookie first-rounder Felix Jones could give the team some trade bait in the offseason.

Indeed, Jones’ comments likely will prompt some teams to start calling in February about the availability of Barber.

The cap consequences of trading Barber, who signed a long-term deal earlier this year, aren’t presently known. Regardless of the timing of the trade, the entire cap charge would hit the books next season, since 2009 is the last capped year under the current CBA.

So if the acceleration is prohibitive, then it arguably wasn’t all that prudent for Jones to risk creating a problem with a player who could screw up team chemistry in the coming year even more than team chemistry already is screwed up right now.

Then again, given that Barber was drafted by Bill Parcells and that Felix Jones and Choice came after Parcells left town and then a year later raided the front office, our guess is that Jerry Jones would prefer to load the 2009 backfield with Felix Jones and Choice, since both players were added by the current regime.

Packers offensive tackle Mark Tauscher tore the ACL in his left knee on Sunday and will be placed on injured reserve by the team this week. Coach Mike McCarthy made the announcement when he spoke to the media on Monday.

With the Dallas Cowboys’ 2008 season, which was presumably resurrected after knocking off a twin-pack of NFC West Twinkies at home in four days, now teetering on the edge of the abyss after blowing a ten-point lead with less than seven minutes to play at Pittsburgh on Sunday, owner Jerry Jones focused his most candid remarks on a guy who wasn’t even there to contribute to the debacle.

Jones has, in essence, declared to the world that he thinks Marion Barber, a bruising bull of a tailback, is a big sissy.

“He can play with that injured toe,” Jones said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. ”He can play with the soreness and a combination of those things. I see nothing that led us to believe he couldn’t.”

Meanwhile, Jones praised rookie running back Tashard Choice, who generated 166 total yards against the Steelers on Sunday.

“Tashard might have added a plus,” Jones said. “I don’t think we lost any slack there.”

As we point out in this week’s Ten-Pack for SportingNews.com (the column is not yet live, and the anticipation for it is now palpable . . . if Webster’s has an alternative definition for “palpable” that includes “non-existent”), the emergence of Choice and the presence of Barber and rookie first-rounder Felix Jones could give the team some trade bait in the offseason.

Indeed, Jones’ comments likely will prompt some teams to start calling in February about the availability of Barber.

The cap consequences of trading Barber, who signed a long-term deal earlier this year, aren’t presently known. Regardless of the timing of the trade, the entire cap charge would hit the books next season, since 2009 is the last capped year under the current CBA.

So if the acceleration is prohibitive, then it arguably wasn’t all that prudent for Jones to risk creating a problem with a player who could screw up team chemistry in the coming year even more than team chemistry already is screwed up right now.

Then again, given that Barber was drafted by Bill Parcells and that Felix Jones and Choice came after Parcells left town and then a year later raided the front office, our guess is that Jerry Jones would prefer to load the 2009 backfield with Felix Jones and Choice, since both players were added by the current regime.

Redskins running back Clinton Portis hinted after Sunday’s game that he wasn’t happy with coach Jim Zorn.

Now he’s gone a lot further than hinting.

In a radio interview today on John Thompson’s show, Portis sarcastically labeled Zorn a genius, and wondered whether he wouldn’t be better off going on injured reserve — or becoming a cheerleader.

“We got a genius for a head coach, I don’t know, I’m sure he on top of things,” Portis said, per Dan Steinberg of the Washington Post. “He’s got everything figured out. Hey, that’s up to him. All I can do is when he calls a play is go out and try to execute to the best of my ability.”

Said Portis of why Zorn pulled him out of the game against the Ravens, “You go back and watch film, I guarantee you won’t see me make no mistakes. Maybe he’s watching a different film than me.”

Asked how he should be used, Portis added, “Hey, bro, it ain’t rocket science how to use me. They can figure that out. If they want to put the ball in my hands I can try to help the team win. They don’t I’ll try to do whatever I can. If I need to cheer Ladell on, I’ll cheer Ladell on.”

When the Rams played the Patriots in October, Rams coach Jim Haslett complained after the game about how his team was flagged for nine penalties for 63 yards, while the Patriots ended up with zero penalties for zero yards.

But that game wasn’t all that out of the ordinary for New England.

Mike Reiss of the Boston Globe reports that the Patriots are on pace to set a new NFL record for fewest penalties in a 16-game season. So far opposing teams have accepted just 44 penalties against the Patriots this year; the NFL record is 59 by the Seahawks last year.

When New England does get flagged, the big penalties are false starts (nine of them so far this season) and unnecessary roughness (seven). Other than those two fouls, there’s not a single type of penalty that the officials have called on New England more than five times all season.

Over the weekend, we reported on rumors that the AFL has plunged into a death spiral.

The rumors are moving closer to the “fact” category.

According to the Rocky Mountain News, the AFL is expected announce by the end of the week that it will suspend operations for the 2009 season. The move comes only days after the AFL released a statement in which the 21-year-old operation said that it is “working on long-term structural improvements.”

As we’d heard it, the collapse of the league, which features teams held by several owners of NFL franchises, was fueled by the expected withdrawal of Platinum Equity’s $100 million investment.

Look for the UFL — if it can find enough people willing and able in the present economy to invest millions in owning a team — to provide a safe haven for some of the AFL’s employees and players. But the UFL will initially have only six teams; the AFL’s suspension of operations will send 16 teams worth of talent onto the market.

ESPN’s John Clayton, who as far as we can tell has not broached this specific subject on ESPN.com, told a Cleveland radio station on Tuesday night that former Steelers coach Bill Cowher will most likely not become the next coach of the Browns.

In an appearance on WKNR, the Cleveland ESPN Radio affiliate, Clayton confirmed our past report that discussions have been occurred between the two sides, and he predicted that an offer would be made after the season.

“Has there been a direct conversation?” Clayton said. “Has there been an interview? No, but there are enough people talking to both sides. They will talk to him after the season. They will make him his offer. He’s probably going to turn it down.”

Our take has been that Cowher is using the Cleveland interest as a way to ensure that his name will remain at the top of the “A” list for the coming hiring cycle. Regardless of whether he’s doing it with his eyes on a potential opportunity elsewhere in 2009 or simply to ensure that his name remains in the conversation for coaching vacancies until he’s ready to return, we believe that Cowher wants to nurture the notion that, in any given year, he’s the gleaming brass ring on the NFL coaching carousel.

Clayton said that other possible arrivals are former Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer (who could serve as coach or Parcells-style executive or both) and current Patriots V.P. of player personnel Scott Pioli, who worked for the “Browns” from 1992-95.

As to Schottenheimer, a league source points out that hiring him could allow the franchise to avoid buying out the big-money contract of offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski, who previously worked with Schottenheimer and would be more likely to remain on staff if Schottenheimer were running the show. After the team’s 10-6 performance in 2008 (which apparently was an “amorition“), Chudzinski received a deal that’s believed to be equivalent to head coach compensation in some cities in order to rebuff the interest of the Ravens in hiring him to replace Brian Billick.

The wild card in this situation is current G.M. Phil Savage. ESPN’s Chris Mortensen recently pointed out that owner Randy Lerner’s preference would be to keep Savage in the fold, but to strip him of final-say authority over the roster. Such a move would allow Lerner to avoid owing Savage a buyout of roughly $8.1 million — unless Savage quits, or is fired for cause due to his “go root for Buffalo” escapades and his role in the Kellen Winslow staph fiasco from earlier in the year.

Frankly, if Savage ends up sticking around, we think his wings would need to be dramatically clipped; as one league insider opined of Savage, “His skin’s like an onion and he loves the microphone. It’s a recipe for disaster.”

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP)—Jaguars running back Fred Taylor will miss the rest of the season because of a thumb injury.

Taylor will be placed on injured reserve for the final three games after tearing ligaments in his left thumb Sunday at Chicago. Taylor had hoped to play though the injury, but a second opinion confirmed the need for season-ending surgery.

Taylor will finish this season with 556 yards rushing and a career-low 3.9 yards a carry. He ranks 16th on the NFL’s all-time rushing list with 11,271 yards, 81 behind John Riggins.

The early indications this week were that Cowboys cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones had suffered a neck injury that was career threatening. But a second opinion gave Jones good news.

Adam Schefter of NFL Network is reporting that another doctor has told Jones he could resume playing in a few weeks. That doctor told Jones he has fluid in his spine but will not need surgery.

With only three games remaining in the regular season, even an injury that keeps Jones out for a few weeks could lead the Cowboys to put him on injured reserve. But Jones is hoping that he can play for the Cowboys in the playoffs, if they make it.

Seems like I've seen this headline something like 9 times in the past 12 or so years.

It's a shame, too. Taylor has accomplished far more than most running backs ever have or will despite being hurt all the time. He's another one of those athletes that make you wonder what they could have done without the injuries.